Jake Tapper smirkingly uses President Trump's own tweets to prove he fired Comey because of Russia


President Trump on Tuesday abruptly fired FBI Director James Comey, sending political observers into a tailspin. While Trump said Wednesday that Comey was dismissed simply because he "wasn't doing a good job," the more elaborate official explanation has been what Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein wrote in a memo to Trump about Comey: that the former FBI boss badly mishandled the investigation of Hillary Clinton's private email server.
You may remember Trump was once positively gleeful about the FBI's investigation of Clinton, basking in "lock her up" chants at campaign stops across the country last year. He also praised Comey for having the "guts" to reopen the bureau's investigation, in the form of the infamous letter the director sent to Congress on Oct. 28, 2016, informing lawmakers that new (and ultimately irrelevant) emails had been discovered that pertained to the case.
But now, as CNN's Jake Tapper explained on his show Wednesday, the White House wants you to believe Comey was fired out of some newfound gallantry toward Clinton and how Comey mistreated her — and certainly not the president's evident "irritation with the FBI's Russia investigation," which is probing whether Trump or his associates knowingly colluded with Russia to tilt last year's election. White House officials have said Trump's frustration with Comey came to a head last week. "If only there was some way for us to see what was on the president's mind in real time last week," Tapper quipped. "Oh right, there's Twitter."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Tapper then pulls up Trump's tweets from the evening of May 2 — and, surprise surprise, they're about the "phony Trump/Russia story." Watch the full segment below. Kimberly Alters
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kimberly Alters is the news editor at TheWeek.com. She is a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.
-
Groypers: the alt-right group pulled into the foreground
The Explainer The group is led by alt-right activist Nick Fuentes
-
10 concert tours to see this upcoming fall
The Week Recommends Concert tour season isn't over. Check out these headliners.
-
How to put student loan payments on pause
The Explainer If you are starting to worry about missing payments, deferment and forbearance can help
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to Trump
Speed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raids
Speed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raid
Speed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearing
Speed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mount
Speed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own list
speed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battle
Speed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants